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The Big Kahuna

Play trailer Poster for The Big Kahuna R 2000 1h 30m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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73% Tomatometer 77 Reviews 72% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Three salesmen for a foundering industrial lubricant manufacturer hang out in their company's hospitality suite at a major convention, waiting for the arrival of a prospective customer they've privately dubbed "The Big Kahuna," whose potential sales would turn the struggling company around. Phil (Danny DeVito) plays peacemaker between the cynical, argumentative huckster, Larry (Kevin Spacey), and Bob (Peter Facinelli), the company's newest hire, whose religious sanctimony irritates Larry.
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The Big Kahuna

The Big Kahuna

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Critics Consensus

Wonderful adaptation of the stage play.

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Critics Reviews

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Will Self London Evening Standard 12/26/2017
It doesn't matter how much he pirouettes, paces, prowls and postures, there's something just a tad too effete about Spacey's performance to make Larry as dangerous a presence as he needs to be. Go to Full Review Ernest Hardy Film.com 01/01/2000
It's smart, funny and insightful and it's quite easy to see what attracted the stars to it. Go to Full Review Jay Boyar Orlando Sentinel 01/01/2000
Despite my reservations about Spacey's performance, the film is generally very well acted. Go to Full Review David Thorpe Out Magazine 05/27/2022
[Facinelli's] perfect performance boldly proves that a handsome young man is a symbol of real hope, even to straight guys. Go to Full Review Joe Leydon The Moving Picture Show 08/06/2014
Sometimes profanely funny, sometimes intensely dramatic, The Big Kahuna is a richly amusing and provocatively insightful film that builds to a profoundly powerful cumulative impact. Go to Full Review Jim Lane Sacramento News & Review 08/07/2008
3/5
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Audience Reviews

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Bulgantamir B @RT36664197 08/10/2024 The director is a good person with experience See more Бавуу Э @RT26109709 08/10/2024 Three salesmen for a foundering industrial lubricant manufacturer hang out in their company's hospitality suite at a major convention, waiting for the arrival of a prospective customer they've privately dubbed "The Big Kahuna," whose potential sales would turn the struggling company around. Phil (Danny DeVito) plays peacemaker between the cynical, argumentative huckster, Larry (Kevin Spacey), and Bob (Peter Facinelli), the company's newest hire, whose religious sanctimony irritates Larry. See more 09/14/2021 Great movie with an amazing performance from Kevin spacey - I miss him . Movie had strong glengary glenross vibes 4.5/5 See more 03/04/2020 A great film with a noticeably above average performance from Kevin Spacey. Hopefully he’ll get back to his acting days soon because no matter what you think of him personally, he will always be one of the best actors of this century See more 04/03/2018 Slow paced and thoughtful, it has the marks of a stage play turned into a movie, which it is. The three main characters are drawn well and everyone else is landscape. A decent movie. See more 03/15/2017 Reminded me a ton of Glengarry Glen Ross. I lost power before I could finish this (so this review isn't totally fair), but the premise was too full of holes, the story was too slow, the dialogue too irritating. When I do finish it I hope the ending proves me wrong. See more Read all reviews
The Big Kahuna

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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John Swanbeck

Director

Kevin Spacey

Larry Mann

Danny DeVito

Phil Cooper

Peter Facinelli

Bob Walker

Paul Dawson

Bellboy

George F. Miller

Hotel patron

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The Big Kahuna

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The Big Kahuna

Peter Facinelli and Kevin Spacey in Lions Gate's The Big Kahuna Danny DeVito as Phil in Lions Gate's The Big Kahuna Peter Facinelli as Bob in Lions Gate's The Big Kahuna Kevin Spacey as Larry in Lions Gate's The Big Kahuna Kevin Spacey, Peter Facinelli and Danny DeVito in Lions Gate's The Big Kahuna Kevin Spacey as Larry in Lions Gate's The Big Kahuna The Big Kahuna (1999) The Big Kahuna (1999) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Three salesmen for a foundering industrial lubricant manufacturer hang out in their company's hospitality suite at a major convention, waiting for the arrival of a prospective customer they've privately dubbed "The Big Kahuna," whose potential sales would turn the struggling company around. Phil (Danny DeVito) plays peacemaker between the cynical, argumentative huckster, Larry (Kevin Spacey), and Bob (Peter Facinelli), the company's newest hire, whose religious sanctimony irritates Larry.
Director
John Swanbeck
Producer
Elie Samaha, Kevin Spacey, Andrew Stevens
Screenwriter
Roger Rueff, Roger Rueff
Distributor
Lionsgate Films
Production Co
Franchise Pictures, Trigger Street Productions
Rating
R (Language)
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 28, 2000, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jun 1, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA)
$3.2M
Runtime
1h 30m
Sound Mix
Dolby Stereo, DTS, SDDS, Surround, Dolby Digital, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.85:1)
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